Less is More When it Comes to Stress Management

by | Jan 24, 2014 | Stress Management, Wellness Tips & Information, Workplace Wellness

by Donna L. Hamilton, MD, MS

Do you stress about stress? Busy super achievers often do and, medically speaking, it’s one of the last things you need for your health. It’s like pouring kerosene on a raging fire.

Think about it: Your body and mind already race with an endless stream of deadlines, commitments, ideas, adrenaline, and cortisol.  Worrying about how that stress affects your body, and how to get it under control, simply throws more fuel onto the fire, making it tougher to concentrate and get things done. This causes more stress… and a greater demand on your body.

At times like that it’s good to keep stress management simple.  Having a few quick and easy stress management skills in your personal wellness toolbox can help break the vicious stress cycle.

Check out a few of my favorite quick and portable stress reduction techniques. Give one or two of them a try the next time you want to shift your body and brain physiology out of stress mode and into the relaxation response.

 

1)     Diaphragmatic breathing: This is the medical term for deep breathing. Taking several slow, deep breaths helps calm your body.  Remembering to focus on your breathe can also help calm your mind, further reducing stress.

 

2)     Virtual Vacation: Mental imagery also helps calm your body and mind. The same mechanism that can cause your heart to race when thinking about something stressful can also cause your body to relax when you think about something soothing.  It’s most effective when you use all your senses. For example, in addition to picturing yourself on the beach, also imagine you can feel the sun on your skin, hear the waves washing up on the sand, and smell the salt air.

 

3)     Laughter: A growing body of literature points to the health benefits of laughter. Some studies show it can help improve cardiovascular health, including blood pressure.  Taking a few minutes to watch a funny video or read a cartoon can help calm your stress response.

 

4)     Music: Music therapy has many proven benefits. Many hospitals actually offer it to their patients. Whether you connect with inspiring lyrics that rejuvenate you, soothing music that calms you, or invigorating music that makes you dance, taking a few minutes to connect with a favorite tune can effectively reduce stress.

 

Be well.

 

Donna Hamilton, MD, MS, FAAP
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